Alternative gas tank for LT1/LS1 conversion?

[sbca96]

OK, I have heard that you can drop a 3rd gen pump into a 2nd gen tank, and
others say you should use a Rock Valley tank. There are downsides to each
of these, the first is no baffling, and the second is 900 bucks!! I'm wondering
if there is a compromise somewhere between. GM made a couple other cars
with F.I. in the 80's, like the Buick Regal GN. The tank dimensions are kinda
close, and the filler is in the rear as far as I can tell.

Camaro tank is 21 gallons.
Dimensions are 39" 5/8" x 21 1/4" x 10" 1/4"

Buick tank is 17 gallons
Dimensions are 36 1/4" x 24 1/4" x 8 7/8"

Anyone gone this route?? Or is this the lower fuel pressure system, and not
the ~42 psi required for the LT1/LS1? Thoughts?

Tom

[Aceshigh]

http://www.ls1tech.com/forums/showth...highlight=Fuel

Oh....and BTW, you can have Rock Valley MODIFY your existing tank for under $300 + cost of the internal pump.
I'm actually in the process of doing it this week.

[ZedMan]

Tanks, Inc has a middle ground solution. It's an intank pump/sump.

[joeljet]

i'm having ricks hot rods in elpaso modify mine for 295. i just bought a walbro 255 pump for an ls1 replacement. they are going to mod tank, install pump in their housing off to the side, so i can use my original sender in stock place just need to cap sender suction line. sound about the same as rock valley. who closer for less shipping?

[sbca96]

I looked at the Tanks, Inc, and the Rock, I read that thread (Ace) about your
tank you were having done. I was just thinking that there MIGHT be a tank
out there that fits the 2nd Gen without resorting to welding and shipping. I
have read that the Chevelle guys use Impala SS plastic tanks. The Monte one
looks fairly close, though it holds less fuel. I had figured that a local shop is
probably able to modify the tank (carefully), but a "bolt in" would be nice. Has
anyone looked at other models? Or even brands? I was also looking at the
90's T-birds, but they have a side filler tube. Mustangs are on the side also.

Tom

[Chevelle66]

I was looking on summit today the 90 caprice tank seems to be similar dimensions as the 2nd gen tanks.... they are tbi ? any one know if this would or wouldnt work? LOL Im a carb guy with an LS1 i want out of the garage and a 72 camaro i wanna drive daily!

[GetMore]

Wow, talk about resurrection!
At least it looks like you know how to use the search function!

I remember reading about somebody using a Caprice tank, but I don't remember what kind of car they were using it in. I do know that they had to modify the tank slightly to lower some high spots. Since the tank is plastic they used a heat gun (hair dryer) to heat the plastic so it would bend easier and then stay in the new form.

As far as I know all you need to do to change the tank from TBI to MFI is change the fuel pump. I think that's just a matter of swapping one for the other, and no real modifications are required. However, I'm not positive.

Just make sure you get a pump capable of enough pressure. The LS1 uses anout 10 psi more than older MFI systems and flow ratings drop off quickly as pressure demand increases on all electric pumps.

[Thrash]

I emailed Rock Auto and they said to have a third party do the mod. So I bought a new tank for my 75 T/A and the Tanks pump kit and will try to do it myself.

[2manytoys]

I just ordered a tank for my 69 from these guys. but they also have them for 70-73 camaros. I should have the tank in next week and can let you know how it looks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1970-71-72-73-CAMARO-FIREBIRD-FUEL-INJECTION-FUEL-TANK_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742Q2em153Q2el126 2QQcategoryZ10076QQihZ014QQitemZ330206183354

[Mizzouri]

Originally Posted by Chevelle66

I was looking on summit today the 90 caprice tank seems to be similar dimensions as the 2nd gen tanks.... they are tbi ? any one know if this would or wouldnt work? LOL Im a carb guy with an LS1 i want out of the garage and a 72 camaro i wanna drive daily!

I heard that the 94-96 Impala tank is a close fit and cutting the trunk due to the high sender is necessary. SurlyJoe on ls1tech.comn says he has one in his 2nd gen bird. I have sent him a PM requesting pics. Til then I need call a junk yard tomorrow and see if I can scare one up locally. Since I am about to get my engine and trans mounted this Friday (hopefully) I really need to sort this out soon.

[Mizzouri]

Alright, here is what I got from SurlyJoe on his Impala tank on his 72 Firebird. I plan to go this route and will post pics once I get it in there.

[ks71z28]

Originally Posted by Chevelle66

I was looking on summit today the 90 caprice tank seems to be similar dimensions as the 2nd gen tanks.... they are tbi ? any one know if this would or wouldnt work? LOL Im a carb guy with an LS1 i want out of the garage and a 72 camaro i wanna drive daily!

I used the 90 Caprice sending unit, and a Walboro 255lph pump, I had to cut out the bottom of the tank due to the fact the Caprice sender is longer, so I made a dropped sump the extends down 3", and 1" above the bottom of the tank. The caprice sender has a guage sender, return line, and will actually fit the tank opening at the top! I got mine from a TBI car, say 89 or so, the square boxy style. I auto cross and road race, so it has to work well. I can run the car as low a 1 gallob before it dies going over the speed bumps! Never had any issues in 4 years! I paid a local fabricator $100 to make and weld in the sump. Have a pro do it because of the safety!

Keith

[purpleflame]

has anyone looked at the dual feed setup that rock crawler guys use for their fuel injected motors was wondering how well this works these guys slosh their fuel sideways all the time and dont seem to run into any air problems or fuel loss, but I wonder about the low pressure pump getting too much draw from the high pressure but they dont seem to say much about it .might seriuosly look into this cause its a inexspensive way to do it and your not modifying the tank at all. heres the web site I found it on.
www.fordfuelinjection.com/?p=95

[ZedMan]

To guarantee fuel all the time, the low pressure pump capacity would have to exceed the high pressure pump capacity. However, since the low pressure pump doesn't need to build very much pressure (the max it would ever need is however much it takes to push fuel through the return, I can't imagine that being even 1psi) you don't need a very expensive low pressure pump.

[Todd80Z28]

Do you think I could just use a 70-73 tank in my '80? Obviously, I'd have to make a spacer to take up the space under the trunk floor that accounts for the 3 gal difference, but other than that, are the dimensions the same?